Arlesdale Railway engines
The engines working on the Arlesdale Railway. Mike Mike is a small strong red engine who prefers goods trains to passengers. He is the youngest out of the original three Arlesdale Railway engines. Biography TBA Personality Mike can sometimes appear a little cunning and arrogant. He thinks he should be in charge of the other two engines, though neither of them really let him boss them around. Bert simply humours him, but Rex goes out of his way to tease Mike and wind him up, which is not very difficult given the fact that he is hot headed. Mike much prefers pulling goods trains to passengers, unlike Gordon, as he considers goods much more straightforward and less likely to complain. He is proud of his strength and appears rather confident, but he would not be so easy to tease if he was not hiding at least a little insecurity. He can sometimes be a little argumentative and irritable and it is common for him to overheat when he loses his temper. Appearance Mike is based on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway's River Mite. He is painted red with blue and yellow lining. He has a brass dome, brass builder's plates on the sides of his cab, red nameplates with gold writing mounted on each side of his boiler and "ARLESDALE" written on the sides of his tender in yellow. According to Rex, Mike used to be painted green. In the Railway Series his wheels are black, but in the television series they are red. Trivia *Mike was made from a TrackMaster Push Along James model. Bert Bert is a small blue tender engine who is the quietest and oldest of the Arlesdale Railway engines. Biography TBA Personality Bert is the quietest of the Arlesdale Railway engines. He appears to be very easy going and friendly. One thing Bert does not like, however, is the idea that bigger engines (and some people) might look down on the little engines just because they are small. Bert usually gets on with his jobs without complaining and does not mind what kind of work he does as long as he is treated with respect. Appearance Bert is based on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway's River Irt. He is painted blue with red and yellow lining. He has a brass dome, brass builder's plates on the sides of cab, red nameplates with gold writing mounted on each side of his boiler and "ARLESDALE" written on the sides of his tender in yellow. In the Railway Series his wheels are painted black, but in the television series they are blue. Trivia *Bert was made from a TrackMaster Push Along Gordon model. Rex Rex is a small green tender engine who lives and works on the Arlesdale Railway. He enjoys nothing more than teasing Mike. He is a hard worker, but sometimes has problems with traction. Biography TBA Personality Rex is a playful green miniature engine with a strong sense of humour. He is a hard worker, and is the natural leader of the little railway engines (in spite of the fact that Mike prefers to think he’s the leader). Rex is very proud of his railway and a great friend to the other engines, but he can’t help teasing Mike to stop him getting too full of himself. Most of the time Mike manages to return the banter, but sometimes he gets a little wound up. Luckily Rex is very good at helping Mike see the funny side again. He does have a kind side and is generally kind hearted and friendly. Appearance Rex is based on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway's River Esk. He is painted green with red and yellow lining. He has a brass dome, brass builder's plates on the sides of his cab, red nameplates with gold writing mounted on each side of his boiler and "ARLESDALE" written on the sides of his tender in yellow. In the Railway Series his wheels are painted black, but in the television series they are green. Trivia *Rex was made from a TrackMaster Push Along Henry model. Jock Jock, named by Douglas for his yellow livery, is the newest steam engine on the Arlesdale Railway, and the strongest. Biography TBA Personality Jock was very cocky when he was first built, as a result of being stronger and more popular than the other engines, but soon learned the value of teamwork when Mike's injector failed and he had to pull Mike and his train single-handedly. He still has a cocky side, but has matured very well past that later on. Appearance Jock is based on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway's Northern Rock, built at Ravenglass in 1976. Two other engines based on Northern Rock's design have been built for the Shuzenji Romney Railway in Japan. He is painted in the Highland Railway chartreuse yellow livery with red lining. He has a brass dome, brass builder's plates on the sides of his cab, red nameplates with gold writing mounted on each side of his boiler and "ARLESDALE" written on the sides of his tender in yellow. Trivia *Jock was made from a TrackMaster Push Along Edward model. Blister I and Blister II Blister I and Blister II, so named for the problems they have when starting in cold weather, are small twin diesels who work on the Arlesdale Railway. Biography TBA Personality The Blisters are peppery and proud, with the sense of cheek present in most engine twins. Despite their jokey ways, they take their work seriously, and often help mellow out tense engines. Appearance The Blisters are based on Cyril, an engine who works on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. Their trouble starting is based on the trouble experienced with the Muir-Hill Fordson granite tractors that worked at Ravenglass with stone traffic until 1953. They are painted black with black and yellow visibility panels on their fronts and rears. Trivia *The Blisters were made from TrackMaster Push Along Diesel models with chassis from 2 Lukes.